Interview with Author Maggie Toussaint

 

Southern author Maggie Toussaint writes cozy and paranormal mysteries, romantic suspense, and dystopian fiction, with more than twenty-five novels of fiction published. Her upcoming release, IN THE WICK OF TIME, book two in A Magic Candle Shop Mysteries, is a cozy paranormal mystery series written under the pen name of Valona Jones. A multi-year finalist for Georgia Author of the Year, she’s won Silver Falchions, two Readers’ Choice awards, and the EPIC Award. She’s past president of Mystery Writers of America-Southeast chapter and a member of Sisters In Crime. She lives in coastal Georgia, where time and tide wait for no one. Visit her at https://maggietoussaint.com/ and https://valonajones.com

First off, thanks to Jacquie inviting me to visit her blog site today. You are much appreciated! 

Thank you, Maggie! 

Question: What is the title and genre of your novel?  Why did you select them?

Answer: My Oct 17, 2023, release is titled In The Wick Of Time, and it’s genre is cozy paranormal mystery. This is the second book in my A Magic Candle Shop Mystery. With my scientist background and a history of running out of energy, I was drawn to writing a series about twins with energy manipulation abilities. As such, they can give and take energy if they so desire. One twin is keen on sharing her energy, while the other always wants her sister to “top off her tank.” My great grandfather was a twin, and I’ve always been fascinated by twins.

Question:   What inspired this novel? How did it come about?

Answer:  In the first book of the series, amateur sleuth Tabby Winslow (with some help from her twin Sage) solved a homicide to save the clerk from her family’s candle shop. In book two, In The Wick Of Time, Sage’s boss is fatally poisoned. The cops zero in on Sage because of the apothecary fixings in the candle shop and also because of the shouting match they had the day before he died. I’ve been interested in poisons as a fictional murder weapon ever since I met the “Poison Lady” Lucy Zahray, at the Malice Domestic conference. I set this book at Christmas because of the use of candle luminaries in many holiday celebrations. If you are unfamiliar with luminaries, they are basically a lunch bag with about a cup of sand and a votive or tea light candle. When the sidewalk is lined with them it is a sight to behold. Candles are an integral part of all the books in the series as well as the titles.

Question:  Could you tell us a little bit about the heroine and/or hero of your novel? 

Answer: Much to Sage’s regret, her twin sister is the heroine/protagonist of this book. Tabby is more grounded, compassionate, and known for her ability to follow through, while her twin wears her emotions on her sleeve, is a bit capricious, and never forgets a slight. Sage would not make a likeable main character. Tabby was a reluctant amateur sleuth because she needed to use her suppressed paranormal powers to help save their clerk, Gerard. Then once she got a handle on how to manage them, she became more confident about her abilities. That’s not all. She can also bend light to make herself and anyone/anything she’s touching go invisible. It comes in handy with their sleuthing. Sage also helps them get into places by learning how to pick locks from her boyfriend. Together the twins make a powerful tool for getting into forbidden places and uncovering the truth.

Question:   Can you tell us about some of your other published novels or work? 

Answer: My series before this one was a culinary cozy (written as Maggie Toussaint). The three-book Seafood Caper Mysteries is about caterer River Holloway on a coastal GA island. She’s asked to use her superb finding skills to locate a childhood friend, now a full grown man names Chili, who’s gone missing. This series is fun of coastal scenery, lots of food and catering, with a bushel barrel of murder and mayhem thrown in. The titles in order are: Seas the Day, Spawning Suspicion, and Shrimply Dead.

Question:   What are you working on now?

Answer: I’m writing book 4 in the A Magic Candle Shop Mystery Series. Book three is written and has been subbed to the publisher. Book four is coming along nicely. I just hit 40,000 words in the rough draft. For these books, I like to end the first draft at about 65.000 words and then through edits, end up with a final word count of 72,000-75,000 words. So far in the book a police detective was seriously injured in a possible case of road rage, a friend of Sage’s was murdered in his home, and now a former classmate has gone missing. The twins are wondering what is happening in their fair town of Savannah, Georgia. I write these stories as I go which makes them much more exciting as a writer. I don’t know whodunnit yet, but I’ll know before I get to the end.

Question:   What made you start writing? 

Answer: My big mouth! That’s the absolute truth. In 1991 when I was laid up with a back injury and I’d read everything in the house, my husband brought home some random books from the grocery store checkout line. About halfway through the second book that I did not finish, I chucked it across the room and announced to the universe that I could do better than that. It took me nearly ten years to learn how to write saleable commercial fiction. Along the way, I learned that you don’t write to the bottom of the market. Publishers and agents are interested in having a project that’s at the top of its game.

Question:   What advice would you offer to those who are currently writing novels?

Answer:  Keep a clear goal in mind and align your expectations accordingly. I’ve known many people who write exceedingly well, but they keep tinkering with their books and never submit them. I also have known writers quit after their first rejection letter or their first critique. If you are writing for yourself only, that’s fine. But if you expect to be published, you must have a well-edited and polished book, and then you must launch it out into the world.

Question:  Where and when will readers be able to obtain your novel?

Answer: In The Wick of Time will be available Oct 17 of this year in ebook and hardcover. The audiobook was just announced and there aren’t links yet for that at the time of this post. Here are the links:

Kindle   https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0BSKWTKZN/  

Amazon Hardcover link   https://www.amazon.com/Wick-Time-Magic-Candle-Mystery/dp/1639105077/

Barnes and Noble Hardcover link   https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/in-the-wick-of-time-valona-jones/1142954173?ean=9781639105076 

Nook   https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/in-the-wick-of-time-valona-jones/1142954173?ean=9781639105083

Kobo   In the Wick of Time eBook by Valona Jones - EPUB | Rakuten Kobo United States

 Comments and/or questions for Maggie welcome here!